A charm clasp having a torus shape and formed as two pivotally connected arcuate parts which are adapted to encircle and releasably attach to a segment of a necklace formed as a strand of pearls, this clasp including an eyelet for attachment of a charm thereto.
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17. A charm clasp, comprising:
a. an arcuate base element extending circumferentially about 180° , and having inner and outer radii, opposite first and second ends, and first and second catch means at said first and second ends respectively,
b. an arcuate outer latch arm extending circumferentially about 180° and having a proximal end pivotally coupled to said first end of said base element and an opposite distal end with hook thereon, and
c. an arcuate inner latch arm extending circumferentially about 180° and having an inner radius substantially the same as the inner radius of said base element, having a proximal end pivotally coupled to said second end of said base element and an opposite distal end with a hook thereon,
d. said inner latch arm having a closed state where its distal end is releasably coupled to said first catch means on said first end of said base element, and an open state where its distal end is pivoted away from said first end of said base element, and
e. said outer latch arm having:
(i) a closed state where its distal end is releasably coupled to said catch means on said second end of said base element, and where said outer latch arm end of said base element together form a torus, and
(ii) an open state where its distal end is pivoted away from said second end of said base element, said outer latch arm being pivotable to its closed state only after said inner latch arm is pivoted to its closed state.
1. A charm clasp for a strand of generally spherical beads, comprising:
a. an arcuate base element extending circumferentially about 180° and having inner and outer radii, opposite first and second ends, and first and second catch means on said first and second ends respectively,
b. an arcuate outer latch arm extending circumferentially about 180° and having an inner and outer radii substantially the same as inner and outer radii of said base element and having a proximal end pivotally coupled to said first end of said base element forming a first pivot joint and an opposite distal end with a hook thereon,
c. an arcuate inner latch arm extending circumferentially about 180° having an inner radius substantially the same as the inner radius of said base element, having a proximal end pivotally coupled to said second end of said base element forming a second pivot joint, and having an opposite distal end with a hook thereon,
d. said inner latch arm having:
(i) a closed state where its distal end is releasably coupled to said first catch means on said first end of said base element, and where said inner latch arm and said base element together form a closed annular collar, and
(ii) an open state where said inner latch arm is pivoted away from said first end of said base element,
e. said outer latch arm having a closed state where
(i) its distal end is releasably coupled to said catch means on said second end of said base element, and where said outer latch arm and said base element together form a closed annular collar, and
(ii) an open state where its distal end is pivoted away from said second end of said base element, said outer latch arm being pivotable to its closed state only after said inner latch arm is pivoted to its closed state.
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A. Field of the Invention
This invention is in the field of jewelry in the form of necklaces and bracelets and particularly clasps for releasably coupling charms to a pearl necklace or pearl bracelet.
B. Background of the Invention
This invention is in the field of necklaces and bracelets formed of strands of beads, and particularly necklaces and bracelets formed as strands of pearls. While beads of regular and irregular or even random shapes are well known, one of the universally popular shapes of beads in necklaces is spheres, and some of the most coveted spheres are pearls. As is well known, pearl necklaces and bracelets are available with pearls of many different qualities and sizes and of different lengths, and with mating coupling elements at the opposite ends of each strand for releasably joining these ends.
The present invention is concerned primarily with strands of pearls, which may be valuable cultured pearls or synthetic pearls or strands of other spherical elements including inexpensive beads of natural or man-made materials. In all these strands, the pearl or bead element has a hole drilled or otherwise formed through its center through which a cord is threaded to create the strand, and spacer elements are generally situated on the strand between each two adjacent pearls or beads. Such a spacer element may be a knot formed in the strand itself or may be a small independent element having its own central bore hole through which the cord is threaded. If the spacer element is spherical or generally spherical, the dimension of the space between beads established by such spacer element will be the diameter of the spacer element. The size of such space is a matter of design and aesthetic choice as regards the dimensional relationship of the spacer to the bead.
While pearl necklaces are generally appreciated for their simple elegance, as where the pearls are essentially identical in size, color and spacing, the present invention provides an opportunity for persons who wear pearl necklaces or bracelets to personalize or creatively modify the appearance of such necklaces or bracelets by attaching a charm or other decorative element of personal choice to the strand. Such charms should be easily attachable and removable to return the necklace to it original design or removable to allow attachment of a different charm. Clasps or attachment means take various forms; however, all known prior art clasps create awkward looking extensions from the simple and pure elegance of a typical and basic strand of pearls. Known clasps have shapes totally different from and esthetically incompatible and conflicting with the original simple elegance of a strand of pearls as seen in prior art patents, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,314,389, 4,530,221, 4,815,180, 7,007,507 and US2004/0194503. The present invention addresses this problem and provides a solution that is both practical and esthetically compatible with the basic strand of pearls appearance.
In the U.S. Pat. No. 4,314,389 of the above-noted prior art publications, a jewelry clasp of generally rectangular shape releasably joins opposite ends of a necklace; in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,530,221 a round cylindrical can-like device fully encompasses a single pearl with a flat blade spring element to releasably capture the pearl in the container; in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,180 a ring shaped jewelry clasp is formed of two half-rings connected by a single pivot joint and a single snap clasp, and no additional internal latching element; in the published application US2004/0194503 A1 a pearl necklace clasp is formed generally as a cage that encompasses a single pearl while leaving substantial areas of the pearl surface to be visible; and in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,736,770 an adjustable ring latch has one arcuate arm that slides circumferentially within and engages a mating arcuate arm.
Each of these prior art devices has its own specific function, but none is even close to having the objectives, function, structure and aesthetic harmony with a strand of pearls, as occurs with the present invention. More particularly, features of the preferred embodiments of the jewelry clasp of the present invention include:
(a) a torus-shaped ring,
(b) dual latches where the outer latch covers, protects and bars the inner latch from opening unless the outer latch is first opened,
(c) formation of a closed ring by each of the latch arms, independently of the other,
(d) the hiding of the inner latch arm within the outer arm,
(e) the outer latch arm combining with a base arm to form a complete torus,
(f) the entire torroid clasp having an appearance that so conforms to the spherical pearls it encompasses, to appear to some as a natural compliment or component element of the strand of pearls it engages,
(g) the clasp securely engaging the strand of pearls at a location that covers only a portion of adjacent ends of two adjacent pearls, while leaving the major parts of the pearls fully visible,
(h) the two latches being easy to operate, secure, but having their respective hook or catch portions essentially invisible; and
(i) having release projections easily accessible.
The above-described features of the new invention constitute some of the many distinctions and advantages of this invention applied separately or in selected combinations over the known prior art. Some of these distinctions are further presented below in the recitations of objects of this invention.
A first object of the new invention is to provide a charm clasp or coupling device for releasably attaching a charm or other decorative element to a strand of pearls.
A further object is to provide a charm clasp for releasably attaching a charm to a strand of pearls where such clasp has an outer shape is esthetically compatible with said strand of pearls, and in a preferred embodiment is a torus shaped collar that encircles a segment of the strand, and more particularly encircles the adjacent ends of two adjacent pearls of a strand.
A still further object is to provide a charm clasp that can be releasably engaged to a strand of pearls easily and quickly, and yet provides reliable security from being unintentionally disengaged.
An additionally object is to provide a charm clasp that will conform generally to the shape of the pearls such a torus or other circular collar.
Another object is to provide a charm clasp that will releasably engage the strand without damaging the pearls
The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combination of elements, and arrangements of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.
For a fuller understanding of the nature of the present invention, reference should be had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:
For convenience and clarity in describing these embodiments, similar elements or components appearing in different figures will have the same reference numbers.
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(a) arcuate base element 20 having opposite ends 20a, 20b,
(b) arcuate outer latch arm 30 having a proximal end 30a coupled via pivot joint 25 to the first end 20a of base element 20, and has a distal end 30b which includes hook or engaging recess 32, and
(c) arcuate inner latch arm 40 having a proximal end 40a coupled via pivot joint 35 to second end 20b of said base element 20, and having distal end 40b which includes hook or engaging recess 42. Intermediate the proximal end 40a and distal end 40b of inner latch arm 40 is a projection 44 for a user to engage with her finger nail to pop open inner latch arm 40 when the charm clasp 10 is being disengaged from the strand.
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While the torus shape of circular cross-section is the preferred embodiment, the charm clasp illustrated herein can be made in various modified forms, as where the collar in cross-section is square, rectangular, oval, hemispherical and other shapes. Furthermore, hook 42 of inner latch arm 40 could engage a catch on or near proximal end 20a of base element 20 instead of engaging the outer surface 24 of tongue 22 of pivot joint 25. Similarly, hook 32 of outer latch arm 30 could engage a catch on or near the distal end 20b of base element 20 instead of engaging outer surface 40s of the proximal end 40a of arm 40 at pivot joint 27.
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While the invention has been described in conjunction with several embodiments, it is to be understood that many alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. Accordingly, this invention is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications, and variations which fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims which include but are not limited to pearl bracelets and necklaces and strands of pearls or other beads generally.
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May 20 2008 | KIM-ARANEO, AMY | MIKIMOTO AMERICA CO , LTD | ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS | 021104 | /0584 | |
Jun 06 2008 | Mikimoto (America) Co., Ltd. | (assignment on the face of the patent) | / |
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